Tim Kaine’s Gun Control Bill Is A Backdoor Ban On All Private Gun Sales….

Kaine’s proposed law, entitled the “Responsible Transfer of Firearms Act,” places a criminal federal liability on anyone who transfers a firearm to an individual prohibited from possessing one by federal law, according to a fact sheet provided by Kaine’s office. Under current law, only federal firearms licensees (FFLs) are criminally liable if they sell a gun to a prohibited individual. Kaine’s law would extend that criminal liability to private individuals as well.

Sounds simple and uncontroversial, right?

Not really. The reason FFLs currently face criminal liablity for unlawful transfers is that they’re mandated by law to conduct or confirmbackground checks on all firearms sales (even sales at gun shows). All interstate sales between private residents must also be processed through an FFL in the buyer’s home state, and that process must include a federal background check. Sales between two private, non-FFL individuals who reside in the same state are the only major category of firearms transfers that are exempt from federal background checks (the reason for that exemption is obvious: there’s no federal or interstate commerce nexus).

In order to conduct those federal background checks, and to prevent themselves from being held criminally liable for selling guns to criminals, FFLs are granted access to the FBI’s NICS database. Before completing a sale, FFLs will contact the FBI, give them the information provided by the buyer on ATF form 4473, and the FBI will tell the FFL whether the buyer is cleared to purchase a gun.

While current federal gun law imposes a criminal liability only on those institutions with authority to conduct criminal background checks, Kaine’s bill does no such thing.

Instead, Kaine’s proposal criminalizes a private individual’s failure to conduct a federal background check while refusing to give that individual the right to conduct the federal background check in the first place. Kaine’s office confirmed that his bill does not give private individuals the authority or ability to conduct federal background checks in order to avoid the federal criminal liability imposed by his proposal. Federal law currently restricts NICS access to FFLs or state law enforcement agencies.

The legislative text of the proposed bill releases the criminal liability only if the seller “has taken reasonable steps to determine that the recipient is not legally barred from possessing firearms.” However, the most reasonable step available — conducting a background check via the same system used by FFLs — is not available to any private individuals.

Kaine’s gun control proposal is akin to an anti-speeding law which for some reason prohibits drivers from using speedometers to gauge their speeds.

Aside from virtually eliminating the private sales market in the U.S., Kaine’s gun control bill will also likely drive up profits for FFLs. If private individuals remain banned from conducting federal criminal background checks, they will be forced to process their transfers through FFLs, most of which charge hefty fees to process external sales.